250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

M

minions

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I have a custom Strat that is in the process of being wired. The pickup configuration is S-S-H. I know that the standard pots for an HB guitar are 500k ohms and the standard pots for a single-coil guitar are 250k, but what should I buy for mine, since I use an HB and two SC's?

Thanks.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

I vote 250k. 500k messes up the single coils by letting through too much high end. IMO, 300k is an acceptable compromise.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

If you don't use a JB a vote 500k.
U could use a resistor between single coils and volume to simulate 250k For neck and middle.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

I love my High end, If you give me to choose I would use a 1000k potentiometer or even I would choose a NoLoad pot, in case you want a slightly less bright that might be the time to use your tone pot to let it at your taste :)
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

In my strat have 250k for volume and a 500k tone for bridge. This worked out great for me.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

master volume - 250K
Tone neck - 250K
tone middle - 250K
no tone pot for the bridge HB, 0.1uF capacitor
make sure the volume pot is really 250K, measure the resistance!
 
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Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

Stef said:
master volume - 250K
Tone neck - 250K
tone middle - 250K
no tone pot for the bridge HB, 0.1uF capacitor
make sure the bridge pot is really 250K, measure the resistance!
Click to expand...

+1, but I prefer a .022 cap
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

I ended up going 500K with my SH strat. At first I had a Pearly Gates bridge and a APS-2 neck single coil (I tried 250K pots, but it made the PG way too warm sounding). I added a 500k resistor from the pickup selector neck lug to ground to make the pot 250K on the neck p'up. While this did help tame the high end on the APS-2, it screwed up the volume pot taper too much. It would go down too quick.

So the solution I came up with was I replaced the APS-2 with a Dimarzio Virtual Vintage Blues single coil. This single coil works great with 500K pots. Now my strat sound pretty balanced.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

Once again, I'm going to ask Seymour to design a bridge humbucker that sounds great with 250K pots. I think it would be a strong seller.

Since 250K removes treble and lowers output, it have to be somewhat overwound and fairly bright, so it would sound "normal" when installed in a Strat with 250K pots.

Maybe it could be done with a special magnet that would make a humbucker to bright to sound "right" with a 500K pot but which might sound perfect with a 250K pot.

The JB is already one such pickup - but it's not for everyone.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

I don't really think it matters, honestly.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

Lewguitar said:
Once again, I'm going to ask Seymour to design a bridge humbucker that sounds great with 250K pots. I think it would be a strong seller.

Since 250K removes treble and lowers output, it have to be somewhat overwound and fairly bright, so it would sound "normal" when installed in a Strat with 250K pots.

Maybe it could be done with a special magnet that would make a humbucker to bright to sound "right" with a 500K pot but which might sound perfect with a 250K pot.

The JB is already one such pickup - but it's not for everyone.
Click to expand...

The only other one that I can think of that could work is the pearly gates plus that Fender collaborated on with duncan a few years ago. This pick-up is so bright that it needs a tone pot on it when wired up with 250k.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

FuelGTRX said:
So the solution I came up with was I replaced the APS-2 with a Dimarzio Virtual Vintage Blues single coil. This single coil works great with 500K pots. Now my strat sound pretty balanced.
Click to expand...


This is definitely another way to go. I put 2 of the VV Blues in my Charvel to match up with the Duncan Custom in the bridge.

I highly recommend them for HSS guitars with 500k pots.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

Grandturk said:
Not in my experience, but that's why its called "tone."
Click to expand...

It is very subjective, but I've found that it can make a big difference. Some humbuckers I've tried with 250k sound really dull with no high end or cut; then with 500k it sounds just right. I think it's a very important aspect of strats and is the reason why hss strats are damned near impossible to get right
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

kgarvey@hotmail said:
It is very subjective, but I've found that it can make a big difference. Some humbuckers I've tried with 250k sound really dull with no high end or cut; then with 500k it sounds just right. I think it's a very important aspect of strats and is the reason why hss strats are damned near impossible to get right
Click to expand...

+1

My advice for putting together a HSS guitar is this:

- pick a bridge humbucker and use either 250K or 500K pots to compliment it
- if you used 250K pots, any single coil should work in the neck and middle positions
- if you used 500k pots, use DiMarzio Virtual Vintage Blues in the neck and middle positions

Alternately, you can use 250K pots and wire it so that there is no tone control on the bridge pickup.
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

DMyers77 said:
+1

My advice for putting together a HSS guitar is this:

- pick a bridge humbucker and use either 250K or 500K pots to compliment it
- if you used 250K pots, any single coil should work in the neck and middle positions
- if you used 500k pots, use DiMarzio Virtual Vintage Blues in the neck and middle positions

Alternately, you can use 250K pots and wire it so that there is no tone control on the bridge pickup.
Click to expand...

I'm going to have to look into these DiMarzio Virtual Vintage Blues pick-ups. I wonder whether they're noiseless sterile nonsense or a valid compromise for hss strats. I still find that using 250k volume and no tone on the bridge still makes to much high end loss on humbuckers. I'm slowly coming around to the idea that unless its with the pearly gates plus, no humbucker will sound 'right' with a 250k volume
 
Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

I wouldn't call the VV Blues sterile, quite the opposite actually. They are a little warmer and fuller sounding than a normal strat pickup, but they still sound like a single coil. With 500K pots, they sound very good.

My Charvel originally came with Fast Track 1's in the neck and middle, and didn't sound enough like a strat to me. The VV Blues fixed the problem.
 
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Re: 250k vs 500k on SSH Strat

+1 on the VV. I like these pickups - they sound almost too good.
 
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